Freelance Archives - Artiholics

How to Keep Your Freelance Animation Business Growing – RubberOnion Animation Podcast #118

Stephen Brooks — Thu, 11 Feb 2016 11:36:56 +0000

Here it is… the final part in the RubberOnion Freelance School and we’re talking about the likely goal in your third year: growing your business. Everyone starts this journey for different reasons, but independence is usually high up on that list. So what happens when you get to that point that you’ve gotten into the freelance game, you’ve established your brand, you started making some more money, and now you’re up against a production wall – you just don’t have enough ours in the day to progress any farther by yourself… you grow your business! This episode covers when to hire-out, which types of jobs to hire for and how to adjust your quote price for a team, the option of connecting with other Freelancers, contracts and the benefits of a virtual studio.

Become a Patron on my Patreon page to get the more detailed ebook in February on starting a freelance business.

And don’t forget to check out the companion blog post with this podcast to read a more structured write-up on what to expect in your third year of being a Freelancer!

Listen for Hollywood Jack ‘n the Beanstalk, speedbumps and potholes, and “thumb or finger?”

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And you can now listen to us out on SoundCloud!

Topics & Timestamps:

(7:33) Why growing your business is different than making more money

(11:52) The tree analogy

(14:41) Hire other people

(19:01) How to know when to hire

(32:19) Types of hires: small tasks

(39:38) Types of hires: medium & large tasks

(43:47) Being a “virtual studio”

(46:43) Forming a cooperative relationship with other Freelancers

(48:34) The mental block which prevents you from hiring others

(52:38) About alternative revenue streams

(54:40) About taxes

(56:09) About contracts

(1:01:02) How to adjust your price to accomodate more people/hires

(1:09:35) Thank you Patrons!

Media Referenced During this Episode:

Rob attempting to be “can head” (mentioned at 6:55)

A photo posted by Stephen Brooks (@rubberonion) on Feb 4, 2016 at 8:04am PST

“The Mess Around” scene from Planes, Trains & Automobiles (25:10)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8riUi_rgOQ

#RubberOnionBattle for Jan 2016 compilation (35:37)

“Moshi Moshi Moshi” animated by Stephen for MindCandy (50:32)

Check out more of your hosts:

Stephen Brooks
Rob Yulfo

Pre-order Stephen’s Animation Textbook on Amazon (coming out in July)!

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
Subscribe on SoundCloud
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What to Expect in Your First Year as a Freelance Animator

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 06 Jan 2016 15:53:02 +0000

To kick-off the new year, I’m having a month long “Freelancing School” where each week you get a blog post and a podcast episode based on one of your first four years in building a freelance animation business. This week it’s all about what to expect when you finally decide to make that jump. We talk about how to pitch for jobs and where to find them, whether or not to take low paying gigs, how to quote for animation and some of the big changes that happen (like taxes and insurance). If you’ve been thinking about making a go at being a freelancer, January’s selection of shows and posts is a good place to start!

Sign up for the newsletter or become a Patron on my Patreon page to get the more detailed ebook in February on starting a freelance business.

And don’t forget to check out the companion blog post with this podcast to read a more structured write-up on what to expect in your first year of being a Freelancer!

Listen for Jessie Katzenflippenburgers, the captain’s thermos bag, scatman, and the $1 one-hour movie

Please Rate & Review us on iTunes

[audio:https://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-114-freelancing_year_1.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast – #114: “What to Expect in Your 1st Year as a Freelancer”]

And you can now listen to us out on SoundCloud!

Topics & Timestamps:

(7:09) What’s on the Show

(10:52) Your (and our) 1st Client… getting started

(18:13) When Stephen decided that animation was his career

(20:23) Freelancing like Standup Comedy

(22:53) Ways to Learn (and get into) Animation

(28:08) Understanding Name-Brand through the world of Modern Art

(34:15) The benefit of being young

(40:46) Client Types: The Poker Chip Metaphor

(46:43) What changes happen to your life when you go into Freelance

(55:08) Networking and finding what works with your own personality

(1:01:07) How to Pitch for a job

(1:13:34) How to Quote a budget for animation

(1:32:41) Final Words and more on networking

Check out more of your hosts:

Stephen Brooks
Rob Yulfo

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
Subscribe on SoundCloud
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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Animators discussing their worst experiences in their Freelancing jobs and how to avoid those problems

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 28 Oct 2015 14:48:13 +0000

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! The “Freelance Horror Stories” are back with a part 2 with stories from YOU listeners and even past interviewees, Elliot Cowan and Exit 73 Studios! The point of this episode is to expose you to the bad experiences that animators have in the industry and then Rob and I (Stephen) give a postmortem on the event to learn what went wrong and why… so if in the future you run into a similar situation you’ll know what to do! Thank you so much for all your participation, we got some fantastic stories this year and it was great talking with you all! Enjoy the show and have an amazing Halloween weekend! And don’t be afraid to share some of your costumes in the comment section below

Listen for “who doin’ it,” joker mask, “you can’t make 100 outta 50,” and spirit man.

Please Rate & Review us on iTunes

And you can now listen to us out on SoundCloud!

Topics & Timestamps:

(7:09) Martin Bell‘s story

(25:42) Sam Albro‘s story

(36:02) Kristen Loader’s story

(1:00:32) Rob Yulfo‘s story

(1:07:57) Stephen Brook‘s story

(1:12:11) Elliot Cowan‘s story

(1:17:07) Exit 73 Studio‘s (Chris Burns & Bob Fox) story

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Check out more of your hosts:

Stephen Brooks
Rob Yulfo

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
Subscribe on SoundCloud
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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How to Collaborate Effectively – finding the right person to work with, virtually working together long-distance, and other tips

Stephen Brooks — Thu, 10 Sep 2015 13:49:03 +0000

This week Stephen and Rob tackle the question of “How to Collaborate Effectively” and what that means for us animators. This topic seemed relevant since we’re working on another Podcastimation for release at the end of the month in conjunction with our 100th episode. We cover some of the factors which go into finding someone to collaborate with, how to avoid some of the possible pitfalls like a difference in vision, and review examples of popular artistic collaborations. We want to know what you think… what makes for a truly effective collaboration? Have you ever been in one yourself? Share your comments, stories and suggestions in the comments section below and we’ll read the best ones on next weeks’ episode!

Annotations:

(11:08) We’re making a 3rd Podcastimation

(15:47) Stephen and Rob’s history of working together

(35:14) Why they work well together

(49:12) How to find someone “worthy” of collaborating – the three pillars of working together and what do look for

(1:08:37) The difference between Collaboration and Cooperation

(1:11:01) Can you balance multiple collaborations at one time, like how bands do?

(1:17:27) Tips on how to collaborate effectively

(1:25:57) How Stephen and Rob collaborate virtually – long-distance and across time-zones

(1:39:50) Is it better to keep collaborations small?

(1:44:45) The most common problems and how to avoid them

(1:53:22) Some examples of the most effect collaborators: directors and editors

(2:01:00) “The most important thing to mention about collaboration… is trust.”

Podcastimation playlist (starting with the first…)

Stephen’s VLOGs playlist (starting with the first…)

Movie Review series with Stephen and Rob playlist (starting with the first…)

“Saving Christmas” referenced in this podcast (Stephen’s short, but voice of Mrs. Claus and backgrounds by Rob – character designs were the first attempt at merging styles)

A good collaborative team plays to each others’ strengths…

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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Viral animation COIN creators have a new movie – Interview with Chris Burns and Bob Fox

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 23:25:34 +0000

This week we have an interview with Chris Burns and Bob Fox of Exit 73 Studios, the creators of the hit animated short COIN and their newest short BOLTRON NINJA MASSACRE. We talk to them about their history, methods, goals, and video games (because of course)! We cover how COIN came to be, what prompted the creation of BOLTRON NINJA MASSACRE, how they work together to actually make those awesome shorts, the two-letter onomatopoeia that really tick Chris off and a TON more! We hope you enjoy this episode and are inspired by their tight teamwork and vision. Chris and Bob were great to talk to and if you stay until the end, there’s a special surprise for regulars. It’s a song. Did I spoil it?

Annotations:

(4:30) Why the name “Exit 73”

(5:30) The creation of Exit 73 Studios

(9:50) Chris Burns’ time at Augenblick Studios

(12:35) Why they decided to get a dedicated studio space

(14:00) Their early work up on YouTube (especially Detectaholic)

(17:08) COIN! Where the idea came from, video games references and the workflow used

(23:36) The many talents of animator Bob Fox (including music, sound effects, coding…)

(28:00) How does Exit 73 Studios get work?

(31:16) What is a normal day like?

(35:13) A discussion on past versions of Flash and their preference

(38:30) BOLTRON NINJA MASSACRE!

(40:33) What led to the decision to make BOLTRON in pixel art

(42:00) The “8bit Breakdown” experience and a discussion on the wrath of YouTube comments (43:45 Stephen reads a YouTube comment)

(45:56) Where the idea for BOLTRON came from

(46:40) Chris Burns breaks my brain with a revelation on his workflow

(55:00) Bob Fox’s music for BOLTRON NINJA MASSACRE

(56:00) Our most satisfying moments of the short and a discussion about Mortal Kombat

(59:29) Their new project — BOLTRON NINJA MASSACRE playable video game!

(1:04:00) Addressing the possibility for a COIN 2 and a COIN video game

(1:05:09) BRUTUS THE BOUND!

(1:09:13) Their dream job and a discussion on what pitching concepts to big studios is like

(1:13:27) What is their next step

(1:14:55) How many minutes of animation they produce a year, on average

(1:16:05) What is it that makes the two of them work so well as a team

(1:21:25) Their HE-MAN designs and whatever came of that gig

(1:23:28) The two-letter YouTube comment that drove Chris crazy

(1:24:20) AUDIENCE QUESTION “I know they animated COIN using Flash. [BOLTRON NINJA MASSACRE] has more of a pixel art aesthetic. Flash is usually known for clean brushwork and nice smooth lines, how were they able to achieve that very retro 16-bit look in Flash?” ~Chris

(1:28:12) AUDIENCE QUESTION “What was/is the ups and downs that they deal with in the studio?” ~Ronald

(1:29:47) AUDIENCE QUESTION “What is that ‘glue’ that joins them together as a team? How are those different backgrounds affecting the direction towards Exit 73 Studios is moving?” ~Juan #1

(1:32:29) AUDIENCE QUESTION “Have they found a way to work simultaneously on a single project or are they continuously jumping between different projects as soon as one of them gets done with his assigned task?” ~Juan #2

(1:33:39) AUDIENCE QUESTION “How do they manage their time between commissions and personal projects? How do they join forces to get things done in the quickest way possible?” ~Juan #3

(1:35:27) AUDIENCE QUESTION “Are there any advice they can give us on starting an animation studio? Especially in terms of finding the right people to work with!” ~Juan #4

(1:37:15) Exit 73 Studios wants your portfolios!

(1:40:40) OUTRO: Follow Exit 73 Studios on their website, facebook, twitter and Bob Fox’s Soundcloud

(1:42:51) Rob’s suggestion for a studio name-change…

… and stay until the end for more music by Bob Fox!

BOLTRON NINJA MASSACRE

COIN

“Brutus the Bound”

“Detect-aholic”

Music by Bob Fox

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
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Oscar Nominee Don Hertzfeldt’s comment on selling animation online, Audience question about going Freelance or Salary Job

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 03 Jun 2015 14:52:48 +0000

With Stephen and Rob taking on this episode alone with only their wits to guide them, stumble they do into a discussion about how and when to charge for your animated content thanks to a Vanity Fair interview of Don Hertzfeldt. We also field a question at the end about whether a listener should go into Freelance, move to a different city for a salary job or both. It’s an all your-stories episode this week so strap in for the shoutouts and name drops!

Annotations:

(13:42) Dreamworks tapped Jason Reitman to write/direct adaptation of “The Adventures of Beekle”

(15:58) Anime Studio 11 streamlines production for various types of animation

(18:13) Oscar Nominee Don Hertzfeldt interview answer on Vanity Fair on selling animation online

(59:54) “Kung Fury”

(1:07:06) Charter Communications acquiring Time Warner Cable in $78.7 billion deal

(1:09:58) Trailer for Blender’s New Open Source Film ‘Cosmos Laundromat’

(1:14:03) Patrick Osborne (“Paperman”) and Aardman Join Google’s Spotlight Series

(1:17:36) WIA (Women in Animation) getting spotlight at Annecy

(1:24:02) King and Country Creates Main Title Sequence For History’s ‘Texas Rising’

(1:27:07) Warner Bros. & DC Entertainment Launch New Global Sites

(1:28:27) Audience Question: “For nostalgic purposes, what animated show would you each like to see have a second run on air or on the web?” ~Ronald Estid Chaparro

(1:29:49) Audience Question: “…I find animation jobs very hard to find locally and I’m constantly feeling torn between starting my own freelance work online or moving to where the work is and trying to get into the industry… Does anyone else struggle with this? Advice on personal skills sets for both? Pros and Cons for relocating? Do some people do both (industry and freelance)?” ~Kristen Loader

“Kung Fury”

“Cosmos Laundromat” pilot trailer

“Texas Rising” main titles by King and Country

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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What it means to be a Creative, how we are judged and deal with motivation issues

Stephen Brooks — Thu, 07 May 2015 10:55:23 +0000

“What is a Creative?” That’s the theme of this week’s podcast where Stephen and Rob are flying solo (duo?) on another ‘hot cocoa show.’ Check out the outline below with timestamps if you want to skip to a particular topic. We talk about why our career (animation) and creative careers in general are a bit different and sometimes hard to relate to by those that aren’t in this type of field, what type of pressures we’re under and how we cope with them, and the all important topic of wrestling work and personal projects at the same time. What is the deeeallll with objective and subjective criteria?? Drinking game to NOT do… sip whenever I say objective or subjective. Yea, don’t do that.

My hope for this week’s episode is that we articulate why being in a creative field is so weird and seemingly incomprehensible to even those close to us and why that may not matter (and that’s a good thing). I kept this episode clean so if you want to send this to someone who you feel doesn’t understand you, wants to, and you don’t have the words or time to try explaining it… feel free! And let us know what you think about this topic in the comments section below. How do you understand your career? How do you deal with the unique pressures it presents?

Annotations:

(9:03) It all starts with a message from Billy Dragon Trask

(13:44) Topic #1: Why is our career different?

(15:25) “How are we judged?” – Objective VS Subjective criteria

(26:23) “How we get jobs?” – The Bad, The OK and The Good

(32:27) “How do we fulfill those jobs?” – Clients’ goals filtered through our personal creative expression (do they own you, are you a hired gun, or do you share creative ownership?)

(38:37) Topic #2: Work Projects VS Personal Projects

(39:29) “What’s the difference?”

(41:05) “Who’s goals are they?”

(45:36) Topic #3: Energy management VS Time management

(48:10) “Why are we talking about when referring to ‘energy’?”

(57:26) “How do you replenish your reserves?”

(1:01:37) “How do you deal with motivational issues?”

(1:07:20) SHOUTOUTS #1: twitter replies (JK Riki, Greg Pugh, Peter J Casey)

(1:08:00) “What is passion, really, and how does it play into our work?”

(1:12:53) “Replenishing energy reserves… or being lazy?”

(1:16:59) “Can you just force yourself to do creative work?”

(1:25:22) “Do you always have to like what you do?”

(1:28:14) The balance between “skill” and “interest”

(1:33:01) Topic #4: The Battle Between You LIFE and YOUR Life

(1:36:54) Creativity, the merging of “selfish” and “selfless”

(1:39:40) Remember why you’re doing this.

(1:42:36) “Will anyone ever understand me?”

(1:59:38) SHOUTOUTS #2: facebook comments (Billy Dragon Trask, Benjamin Shelly, Andrew Kaiko, Martin Bell, Ronald Chaparro, Chris McEwan, Mathius Schulenberg, Mark Porter, Samuel R. Albro)

Stephen’s VLOG series in creating an animated short (playlist includes episodes 1-8) mentioned at the 1:19:55 mark in this episode of the podcast

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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Lynda.com sold to LinkedIn for $1.5bil, 1920s-style Clarence episode

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 15 Apr 2015 18:47:35 +0000

Where did the name ‘RubberOnion’ come from? Cat animation sells cars? Lynda.com sold for HOW MUCH?! We have a special 2hr episode of the podcast this week because there were so many relevant stories! A new segment debuts at the end as well where I answer some questions like what’s the benefit of an LLC and how to spot a bad college. And who knows, you might be in our OTHER new segment this week: shoutouts!

Annotations:

(14:46) ‘Clarence’ Episode Pays Tribute to Rubber-Hose Animation

(22:07) Studio Ghibli Does Cute Cat Car Commercial

(26:54) John Kricfalusi Makes ‘Squidbillies’ Promo For Adult Swim

(32:10) Lynda.com sold to LinkedIn for $1.5bil

(42:26) ‘Perfect Houseguest’ by Max Porter and Ru Kuwahata

(52:19) Adobe Character Animator

(1:01:47) No more Simpsons DVDs

(1:09:50) RAPID FIRE!!!!!!!!!

(1:34:30) Slow Burn Question: “Stephen, what was the benefit to going LLC for your business?” -James T. Nethery

(1:40:10) Slow Burn Question: “What should you look for in a good animation school? Also, discuss how not to fall for the tricks of the advert trade” -Orion McHugh

(1:45:26) Shoutouts! Jeff Young-Sterling, Tobias Krebs, & Newgrounds users (BrainofBryan, RoboProdigy, manotran)

“Clarence” rubber-hose animation tribute episode

Studio Ghibli ‘cat animation’ car commercial

“Perfect Houseguest” by Tiny Inventions

Adobe Character Animator demo

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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Difference between an Animation Job and a Career, Sylvain Chomet directs a music video

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 08 Apr 2015 17:53:43 +0000

There aren’t many main stories this week because of the high likelyhood of fakery (April Fools was a few days before this recording). But what we DO have was completely submitted by you listeners so thanks for the help! Disney is making another live-action movie off one of their animation properties, Adam West and Burt Ward are Batman and Robin again, there was a music video directed by Sylvain Chomet, and the main conversation is about the difference between a “job” and a “career,” prompted by Will Finn’s blog post. And, of course, RAPID FIRE! Also, this week I simul-upload to Newgrounds Audio Portal for the first time so if you’re a member there give another shoutout!

Annotations:

(9:13) Disney looking to make a live-action Winnie the Pooh movie

(17:21) New Animated Batman film with Adam West and Burt Ward voicing

(27:55) Will Finn posts about wanting a career vs a job in animation

(51:36) “Carmen” by Stromae music video directed by Sylvain Chomet

(1:11:47) RAPID FIRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

“Carmen” by Stromae music video directed by Sylvain Chomet

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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First footage from “Attack on Titan,” Video Games attack Earth in PIXELS, and how to get into Freelance Animation

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 25 Mar 2015 19:45:32 +0000

The PIXELS trailer was the most popular conversation topic on the RubberOnion facebook page this week, so we lead with that. At the end we discuss the internet as a creative spawning ground and how traditional media fits in AS WELL AS addressing a question to me (Stephen) about being a freelance animator. We also talk about the ATTACK ON TITAN live-action teaser, INCREDIBLES 2 plot, and the announcements of a California Raisins movie as well as Joseph Gordon-Levitt starring in and producing a Fraggle Rock film. Also Rob went to an underwear party in Williamsburg (which, as a sentence, isn’t that weird because it ends with “in Williamsburg”). So enjoy the discussion and feel free to join in below in the comments section!

Annotations:

(14:45) PIXELS trailer

(23:57) FROZEN / THE THING mashup stop-mo video by Lee Hardcastle

(30:22) ATTACK ON TITAN live-action movie first clip

(36:39) INCREDIBLES 2 coming to theaters Summer 2016

(42:06) California Raisins coming back in live-action/CG hybrid movie

(49:11) Joseph Gordon-Levitt will produce and star in the live-action FRAGGLE ROCK movie

(56:21) Variety report says ‘Internet Serves as Spawning Ground for Emerging Animators’

(1:16:59) RAPID FIRE!!!!!!!!

(1:32:53) Question(s) from Timothy Bergeron: “Hey Stephen, How did you go about making that leap to a freelance animator?… Is getting clients just networking? Are their sites you go to and bid on jobs? What’s the positives and negatives for being a freelance animator… What do you feel is the best way for freelance animators or artists in general, to get noticed? What ways of social networking would you use to get exposure?”

PIXELS trailer

FROZEN/THE THING mashup claymation short by Lee Hardcastle

ATTACK ON TITAN clips (from Japanese talk-show, complete with distracting overlays)

ASTROBOY Reboot teaser

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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Freelance Artists share their worst experiences to learn from on Halloween

Stephen Brooks — Mon, 03 Nov 2014 01:51:15 +0000

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! This week we reached out to other animators and creatives to give us their worst experiences in freelance that they could share with us like ghost stories around a campfire. Spooooooky! The idea is that if you’re thinking of getting into freelance or can relate to some of these stories, they can serve as a heads-up on what you might encounter and/or how to prevent them. See? It’s fun AND educational. I’m very proud of this episode so I hope you enjoy it and get lots of great information out of it!

Annotations:

(08:44) Tristian Goik

(25:55) ROB YULFO

(38:46) Nathan Viney

(57:45) STEPHEN BROOKS

(1:10:38) Mat Elfring

(1:34:22) Martin Bell

(1:50:24) PAT RYAN

(1:56:23) Andrew Kaiko

Andrew Kaiko’s new series “TidBits, with Norm & Cory”

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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Interview with Alan Becker, creator of viral “Animator vs Animation” stick-fight series

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 22 Oct 2014 19:48:54 +0000

This week we have a very special interview: Alan Becker, creator of the hit “Animator vs Animation” stick-fight series joins us to talk about his experience with Kickstarter, what happened when his first short went viral, and how he actually does the things he does! There’s a lot of really great stuff here for young and old animators from the Indie scene, especially when he starts talking about when and how he had to navigate the murky waters of a viral hit. And be sure to check out his work embedded below!

Annotations:

(04:10) Why do a fourth in the Animator vs Animation series?

(05:46) Animator vs Animation 1

(08:18) Animator vs Animation 2

(12:14) Animator vs Animation 3

(14:19) Talking $$$

(20:53) Problems with eBaums World

(24:04) ‘If Water Had Eyes’ animated short

(26:34) Kickstarter for Animator vs Animation 4

(39:38) Behind the Scenes video

(48:03) Talking the narrative of the full series

(1:02:34) Why this resonates with animators

(1:07:07) Achieving the tone

(1:11:40) The ‘Rough Animations’ in the short

(1:13:59) The undone YouTube scene

(1:18:13) How he feels about the video being ripped and shared around

(1:22:51) His ‘Spirited Away’ MineCraft project

(1:25:52) University and Major

(1:31:34) Where we discuss his particular talent and where it might come from

(1:33:50) Animating the horse

(1:41:24) Stick-Texting iPhone app

“Animator vs Animation 4”

Behind the scenes video

His Flash tutorials

“Animator vs Animation 3”

“Animator vs Animation 2”

“Animator vs Animation 1”

“If Water Had Eyes”

Spirited Away MineCraft project

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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“Popeye” test footage, Jessica Rabbit got fat, and more animation stories

Stephen Brooks — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 16:08:48 +0000

Pat’s back! Feels so good to have the gang together for this one because we’ve got some great stories suggested by YOU. “Popeye”, “Where Are They Now” animated short, “Deadpool” greenlit, “Rick and Morty” co-creator Justin Roiland fighting the Union, The Hub dies, Stephen updated an animation from 2010, and we inspire people apparently… seriously. And we have another submitted question! You will enjoy this one. You will. I promise. Kinda.

Annotations:

(9:04) “Popeye” test footage

(18:38) “Where Are They Now?” animated short

(29:46) “Deadpool” movie set for February 12, 2016 thanks to popularity of leaked pitch video

(46:45) Discovery & Hasbro ending partnership in The Hub, and renaming Discovery Family

(58:41) “Rick and Morty” Co-Creator Justin Roiland fights the Union

(1:09:42) Stephen updated the Zombie Cagefighter video for smoother animation

(1:19:29) We apparently inspired the creation of an Arabic language podcast

(1:26:58) SUBMITTED QUESTION from Ronald Chaparro: “What film franchise do you see or want to make as animated film or short? And which franchise do each of you guys want to work on, if you had the chance?”

“Popeye” test footage

“Where Are They Now?” animated short

“Deadpool” test footage

Stephen’s “Zombie Cagefighter” animation from 2010 (not shown) got an update (below)

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
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Two animators talk about how to be an Indie or Freelance animator AND have a life

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 17 Sep 2014 18:19:21 +0000

With a slow news week, Rob and Stephen settle down and talk about something bugging Rob lately: “how to be an animator AND have a life.” We talk about productivity methods, past experiences, full time VS freelance, and of course — stories! And also… VIEWER QUESTIONS!! But we start it all off with a clip from earlier in the week when Rob called Stephen to practice his telephone script he had to read on behalf of the Brooklyn Bourough president. And you all know what happens when Rob tries to read aloud… under pressure.

Viewer Questions:

(1:32:45) J.K. Riki – “What would you be if not an animator?”

(1:37:39) Chris McEwan – “Process- We’ve seen how Stephen prepares for an animation, from initial ideas through to storyboarding, preparing sound effects and music. How does Rob prepare his work? He comes across as very laid back and I’ve heard it said on previous episodes how quickly he makes his stuff. Does he just jump right in and wing it?”

(1:42:17) Chris McEwan – “Showreels- How long should your showreel ideally be without it being blink-and-you-miss-it or being so long it gets boring? I’ve seen some as short as 40 seconds and some in excess of 6 minutes (although usually for programs, like Houdini, not for individuals)”

Stephen’s Animation Reel (referenced in question #3)

Rob’s Animation Reel (referenced in question #3)

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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Every Simpsons Ever marathon and Bob’s Burgers won an Emmy

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 27 Aug 2014 19:11:54 +0000

The Emmys happened! They’re a thing! We talk about the winners and our love for “Bob’s Burgers” as well as the Every Simpsons Ever marathon happening on FXX (whatever THAT channel is…). The great Lord/Sir/Mr. Amazing Richard Attenborough passed away and we honor him, but then he honors us right back by giving us maybe the greatest transition we’ve ever done (divined through Pat, who’s back this episode)! And don’t say we never did anything for you, because we read another email exchange between a major company asking for free work and an artist who just won’t take it anymore (emphasis mine)!

Annotations:

(04:25) FXX’s Every Simpsons Ever marathon

(15:28) The Primetime Emmys

(26:43) Feminism In A Run-Down Taffy Factory: The Women Of ‘Bob’s Burgers’

(40:36) RIP Lord Richard Attenborough

(46:24) Pixar’s ‘The Good Dinosaur’ is being entirely reworked

(1:08:43) Designer Dan Cassaro responds to Showtime ‘competition’ and takes the internet by storm

(1:26:28) Chinese animation firm uses a robot to let the US based boss ‘walk’ the floor

Pat Ryan’s character, “Robot Standing Upright Comedian”

Goodbye, Sir Richard Attenborough

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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Bill Watterson returns to Comics, Rocky & Bullwinkle designs show up for GEICO, & the AVGN movie sets a release date for the movie

Stephen Brooks — Thu, 12 Jun 2014 01:58:30 +0000

It’s Rob’s Birthday!! It was Pat’s Birthday last week!! And I still make them talk to me about cartoons! This week, we actually start the discussion with the Angry Video Game Nerd movie, because as Indie creators ourselves we’re happy when one of our own (same medium or not) breaks ground on a huge development like this. And you know what? It doesn’t stop there, Signe Baumane is another Indie creator who is making her first feature length animated film, “Rocks in my Pockets” and it’s got a trailer! Ari Folman is making a jump to a western screen wide release with his hybrid movie and it’s got a trailer too… and “Bojack Horseman” is the first original adult animated programming on Netflix and it’s got a trailer. Oh and Rocky & Bullwinkle disappoint us. But before all of that… we must sing to you one of the great 90s cartoon anthems. Behold.

Annotations:

(19:18) James Rolfe to tour screenings of AVGN: The Movie starting July 21st

(25:24) Bill Watterson returns to cartooning for 3 weeks, secretly

(34:12) DreamWorks’ version of Rocky & Bullwinkle make their first appearance on a GEICO commercial

(44:26) Ari Folman’s “The Congress” trailer

(52:06) Signe Baumane’s “Rocks in my Pocket” trailer

(1:00:28) Julian Petschek’s “Butta Yourself” music video

(1:04:49) “Bojack Horseman” trailer

(1:21:37) Question posed: “Is it ‘Animation’ or ‘Animations’?

(1:25:21) 10 Best Words “The Simpsons” Created

Rocky & Bullwinkle on GEICO commercial

Ari Folman’s “The Congress” trailer

Signe Baumane’s “Rocks in my Pockets” trailer

“Butter Ya’Self” by Julian Petschek music video

“Bojack Horseman” trailer

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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Reading Rainbow meets Kickstarter goal, “Book of Life” & “Song of the Sea” trailers, and Sony Imageworks moving to Vancouver

Stephen Brooks — Wed, 04 Jun 2014 20:45:46 +0000

We kicked off June with another LIVE episode of the podcast! We talked about Reading Rainbow, gushed over Mukpuddy’s work, loved the “Song of the Sea” trailer, and discussed Sony VFX house Imageworks leaving the US for greener tax credit pastures of the great north in Vancouver. But not before we could talk about Godzilla and Maleficent, however… two movies on opposite ends of the spectrum in numerous ways. Thanks to everyone who showed up for the live taping and joined us in the chat room… you’re all awesome! This week’s title comes courtesy of Andrew Kaiko in the chat, Pat Ryan simultaneously coming up with it in the podcast, and all off Rob’s weird, periodic ramblings. Oh, and we finished with some limericks and Pat serenades us with an original song after the music at the end.

Annotations:

(20:04) Reading Rainbow funded and then some!!

(30:31) Mukpuddy’s “Dead End Job”

(37:51) Explanation behind Sonic’s new design

(42:03) Autodesk’s Draco Lets You Animate An Illustration In Seconds

(46:12) Pixar to release Renderman to the public for FREE

(51:00) Awesome New Images from Hayek’s ‘The Prophet’

(55:54) “Song of the Sea” trailer

(1:02:33) “Book of Life” trailer

(1:13:43) Sony VFX Imageworks leaving the US for Canada

Reading Rainbow team reacting to getting funded

Storyboard timelapse for “Broken Egg” short that Stephen referenced

Mukpuddy’s “Dead End Job” animated short

Demo of Autodesk’s new Draco program

“Song of the Sea” trailer

“Book of Life” trailer

Clip from episode 2.10 of “Comedy Bang! Bang!” which was centered around a long comedic commentary on greenscreen/VFX

Check out more of your hosts:
Stephen Brooks (@RubberOnion)
Rob Yulfo (@RobYulfo)
Pat Ryan (@TheBadPatRyan)

And please Rate/Review us on iTunes
… and Rate/Review us on Stitcher while you’re at it! (=

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